I met my friend and associate, Lance (pronounced “Lancie” by the Brazilians) in the Club Lounge. Bruno came to let me know that my room was ready and drop off my key. The room was simple but provided a great panoramic view of the city. Later in the week, I decided that Renaissance, Sao Paulo was one of my favorite hotels (for business travel, of course). I refreshed myself and met lance for an introductory walkabout on Paulista Ave. Paulista Ave. is known as the business center of the city, housing numerous financial and cultural buildings. We traversed through an antique fair set up underneath the Museum of Art, MASP. We also passed by some sort of demonstration for women’s rights on the street that included loud music and some dancing. There was even a small section of native forest park nestled in amongst the high rise buildings, which provided a shady place to stop.
More of the story and another video after the cut…
Arriving at FWA, I was early enough to enjoy a final cup of Fort Wayne’s Higher Grounds roast coffee before boarding the flight to ATL. I sipped a cup and realized that I was heading to one of the world’s supreme coffee producers. The country produces 35% of the world’s supply. Naturally, maximum coffee consumption became one of my missions of the trip.
My overnight flight to Sao Paulo from ATL was 9 hours of patience. Sleeping whilst sitting in an aisle seat is an art - one that I have not mastered.
The flight was uneventful for the most part. The packed Delta flight provided everyone with a small screen for games, TV and movies. There were several TV shows available, but who wants to watch Will & Grace? I was too cheap to pay for movies so I simply read STOPSMILING and WIRED.
I had the privilege of flying into Guarulhos airport as the sun came up. I looked out the window to find houses situated in every possible angle as they covered rolling hills. The seasons in Brazil are opposite that of the US, so it was a delightful 70 F as I landed at 7 AM.
[Rest of story and short video after the break...]
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